1. Field of Invention
The present invention relates to a device for a universal ground-following tractor hitch including a special fence mower.
2. Background
Tractors are often employed with many accessory implements, such as mowers, tillers, rakes, feeders, plows, grapples, post-hole diggers, post drivers, drillers, cultivators, spray booms, dozer blades, and similar apparatuses.
In the case of mowers many improvements are designed to embrace the situation of mowing around and close to fences, fence posts, guardrails, and other vertical objects that impair clear pathway mowing whether for highway right-of-ways, parks, commercial properties, or general agriculture uses. The efficiency improvement in not having to employ a separate hand controlled trimmer is obvious.
Often a system to handle mowing around a fence with posts is designed to mow simultaneously on both sides of the fence. That is, some mechanical arrangement extending over the fence is provided to position two mower heads, one on each side, of the fence while the tractor moves along parallel to the fence row. This arrangement is expensive while subject to much maintenance and is difficult to control on rough ground, such as is common along roadways.
Various hitch assemblies are employed to serve as an intermediate mechanism between the tractor and the operating implement. Often these hitches utilize the power takeoff, usually referred to as the PTO, system of the tractor, sometimes directly and sometimes to operate a transitional power unit, such as a hydraulic system or an electrical generator. For instance, mowers often use belt-driven assemblies coming directly from the PTO, but they also are designed with hydraulic or electrical motors to drive the mower blades and these systems are powered by the tractor in some manner. However an alternate arrangement is to provide a trailer system containing a separate engine to drive the implement.
Another important situation occurs depending upon the ease of installing and removing a tractor hitch as well as its transition in use between several implements. Thus a general purpose or universal, versatile forward hitch is needed such as the subject invention provides.
One difficulty in employing agriculture implements occurs when rough ground is encountered. Of course, the operator can always manually adjust operating conditions for rough ground situations, but this is time consuming and often produces unsatisfactory results. The subject invention compensates for rough ground situations as part of the hitch system which employs various applications of torsional links.
Related United States patents include:
______________________________________ No. Year Inventor ______________________________________ 5,425,224 1995 Downey et al. 5,129,218 1992 Youngberg et al. 5,035,107 1991 Scarborough 4,901,508 1990 Whatley 4,697,405 1987 DeWitt et al. 4,181,181 1980 Old 3,754,383 1973 Burrough et al. 3,701,238 1972 Hintze, Jr. ______________________________________
Referring to the above list, Downey et al. disclose a conventional mower deck with a moveable in-and-out carriage positioned under a tractor so as to mow close to fences.
Youngberg et al. disclose the use of torsional suspension bars on the tractor frame to tilt it for use on sloping terrain.
Scarborough discloses a rotary lawn mower having an arm with a moveable trimming attachment so as to mow close to fences.
Whatley discloses a mower using a horizontal boom with a pivotal mower head attached so as to mow close to fences and hill sides. The mower head has three separate cutting heads arranged around a central shaft which rotates only by impacting a fence post.
DeWitt et al. disclose a trailer mounted mower with multiple mower heads. One set of moveable mower heads extends on the outside of a fence row. Another moveable mower head is employed on the inside of the fence row.
Old discloses a three-point hitch to operate an implement on the front of a tractor and is designed to minimize side-to-side sway of the tractor.
Burrough et al. disclose a torsional spring suspension for a sickle-bar mower designed to raise it for transport.
Hintze, Jr. discloses a four element sickle-bar cutting mower having the ability to rotate only when impacted so as to partly curl around a fence post.